Here's the thing. If you remember, back when Bas first bought the club, i mentioned someone i knew who knew him, who told me he would be very bad news for the club. All along, despite everything that Bas was doing, he kept telling me that it was bad news, that Bas was a crook, and that we would find out eventually how bad it would be, unless something drastic happened. I saw him this morning. He was elated. He reckons that Bas will have taken a lot of the money from player sales for himself (obviously just heresay, i'm just repeating what i heard and have no idea if it's true or not), and that he has probably nicked a good few million from the club before skipping off into the sunset. The word crook came up a few times today...and he is so thrilled that we are now back in safe hands. I have no idea what state the club was in up until the Pozzos took over..but i can only imagine that we were very close to disaster. What kind of a man was Bas, to think that he could run a football club...?! He truly had no idea... Tonight, i just feel lucky that we have been saved. Where it will lead us i have no idea, but whatever happens to our wonderful little club that isn't quite in London, it'll be better than the disaster that could have befallen us...
When Bas came in , we speculated as to whether he was a con-man , a front-man or a fantasist. Few thought that he was a serious businessman, with a clear plan for the club and the resources to achieve it. Now we can see that he was mainly a fantasist-- and also a poor businessman, out of his depth from the outset, erratic in his judgements, secretive to a fault . Though for a time he seemed to be delivering on some of his promises, even on a learning curve, revelations of chaos behind the scenes show that this was an illusion--he was never going to be a credible owner. In fact it looks now that he took us very close to administration-- he admits he was in trouble trying to pay off the bonds and Barclays at the same time, it is alleged suppliers were not being paid, perhaps even the Inland Revenue. Did the bondholders step in to head off administration? Did the Pozzo's suddenly recognize that Watford would fit their "player development" business model in the nick of time? They have certainly saved Bas from a lot of grief if he HAD taken us into administration--perhaps they have even left him with a profit, or a pub. We might find out if the WO does some probing , but so long as the club stays in private hands we will probably left to speculate--as usual. The key thing now is for the new owners to act speedily to ensure that the pitch is finished, a coaching/management structure is in place and squad building can start for the new season. They have some goodwill from the fans at present--they should build on it, with a strong positive statement of intent for the club, evidence of investment and commitment to the Watford ethos. We do not want to be a cog in the Pozzo wheel --the first test for the new owners is how they present themselves and their plans to the supporters.
Unfortunately, as with any club, and with any owners, the way they present themselves is not a test particularly. The fans will always stick with the club, on the whole. And the Owners will always do what they want, whether it be in the best interests of the club or not. I'm sure, with the sacking of Sean Dyche, the owners will set off on the wrong foot. I'm also confident that they will put things in place that we get very excited about, and hopeful. What they do with the club is out of our control, we can only hope we are still excited this time next year, and the year after..and beyond!
Hornblogger‏@Hornblogger I've blogged for the first time in ages about the Pozzo takeover. I even mention the f word. http://tiny.cc/52zrgw if you're interested.
Very good indeed Al. I think you have managed to capture the mood that exists in many minds. Relief that Baz who seemingly at best is incompetent is off the radar, but hope that something better will follow, without actually knowing quite what it will be. From what I have read regarding the other clubs, success on the field will be important. It is noticeable that when a manager fails to deliver what is expected, he doesn't last very long. If the rumours about Zola being offered a four year contract are true, wait and see, then they must be prepared to back their judgement and pay up if they are wrong.
More gossip about Zola and his pals The more I read the more I fear for WFC, hopefully the Pozzo's will be a different kettle of fish as owners http://www.newsnow.co.uk/A/584980478?-276
Good blog Al. I think the firsts hints of uncertainty are starting to emerge after the euphoria of the fall of Bas. Where are we going now? What will these people do to our club? Will we still feel a part of it? As for SD I find myself agreeing with one of the more obnoxious posters on the Wobby site. If it is a choice of the Pozzos and no SD or SD and Baz then I have to accept the loss of SD. The Pozzos have their business model and, presumably, they have writen their business plan before they finally aquired the club. Part of that plan would be to get everyone knowing what they are expected to do. Again, presumably this included having a manager ready to go with their ideals rather than training a new one. I don't say that I like it but I understand it. Having said all that I still have a nagging disbelief that WFC have finally got owners for whom their own goals coincide with an improvement for WFC. The more the rumours emerge about the state of the club under Baz's ownership, the more WFC seems ripe for exploitation - whether that is asset stripping or becoming a nursery club. Possibly even worse would be a club for experimentation that the owners don't want to conduct at Udinese or Granada. I'm not saying that these fears of mine are rational. Supporting football team is not rational, it is emotional. It is almost as if your son or daughter starts making frequent business trips to Bangkok but you don't know why. You have to trust.
The only comment that seems relevent, is that many Hammers fans were very sorry when he left. Some, clearly not all, thought that he was getting the team to play attractive football, in the same way that Big Sam has not won them over with his style.
Better the devil we knew, or better the devil we don't? LB has gone, and certainly his actions over the last few weeks would indicate we are better off without him, at least now. He came in made a few promises, has actually stuck to what he said and leaves with the club seemingly in chaos again; will we ever discover waht was going on during his stewardship? The Pozzo ownership may prove truly fantastic, it may not. There has been a lot of euphoria about the passing of the old regime but the new one has not put forward any sort of vision. We know what has been gleaned from a Spanish journalist and little snippets in all sorts of other places but how do the Pozzos see Watford fitting into the general scheme of their football world?
Hornette---the way the new owners present themselves to the fans is a key test that they must pass.Of course they have the power to determine the direction of the club, but they would be foolish not to try to get the fans on-board from the start. They would not want to run a club against a backdrop of suspicion or hostility --look at Man Utd or Blackburn. And they must hope that by building on the current mood of optimism they will sell a few more season tickets, shirts etc. So-- will they present a compelling vision for the future of the club? Will they convince us that they understand the traditions of the club? Will they avoid alienating support by getting rid of respected coaching staff and players? Bas made a mistake by being secretive and allowing speculation to run riot. Let us hope this does not happen again. The new owners have the benefit of not being Bas, but the handicap of being "foreign", unknown to us, and not endorsed by GT or EJ. So their first task is to explain their intentions and set out their plans-- and then make tangible improvements to squad and ground. But extravagant promises will not be believed , and should be avoided.
You're right Al, it's all very worrying, but i keep thinking that we have the Pozzos to oversea, so we'll be okay..i do hope i'm right!
i get that Roger, and i do agree with you...but i also think that despite the hostility from fans at places like Man U and Blackburn, the owners are not detered, it doesn't change their way of thinking..nor their methods, and they bank on the fact that fans won't walk, they'll still come and buy season tickets and shirts..because it's their club regardless. It will be lovely if we can all get behind them, and feel comfortable with their plans for the club, and we all hope that will be the case, but it won't necessarily matter one way or the other...sadly. Still, i don't want to focus on the negative until there's something to be negative about
I notice that the official site had a "key personnel" item put up on friday. Confirmation from the new owners that not much will change or a reminder from the current staff to the new owners as to who they are?
"Filler" article in the WO this a.m. http://www.newsnow.co.uk/h/Sport/Football/Championship/Watford Not a word now for a couple of week re SD position etc. I think means he is out..... ?? Zola was linked to sampodoria but now apparently out of the frame on that one?
Just a line from an e-mail I received this morning. "I have it on good authority that Sean met with the Pozzos on Friday to discuss plans for the season ahead." Make of that what you will.
I hope that is true - the very least he deserves is to be heard about his ideas going forward, and the Pozzo's ideas on where they intend to take the club! If they have different visions, then fair enough, but I would say the Pozzo's way of doing things aren't very different to the way we already do them. As long as they back SD, rather than force him to manage a certain way (and force too many loan players on him), there's no reason why they can't get on and move the club forward together!
